Contract Controversy Continues in Fortnite with Mitr0 and Edgey
| Tags: Fortnite
| Author Matt Pryor
Turns out, Turner “Tfue” Tenny's contract wasn't the only one that contained what some believe to be unfair terms.
Ever since Turner “Tfue” Tenney left FaZe Clan citing an unfavorable contract as the reason, similar situations are developing across the Fortnite scene. Tenney’s predicament was unique in that the FaZe brand helped build him into one of the top Twitch streamers on the platform. To summarize the FaZe Clan contract, it included primarily 50/50 splits across the board in terms of self-made brand deals, appearances and in-game purchase royalties.
On top of this, FaZe was taking 80% of brand deals brought in by the organization off of Tenney. In short, the player felt that the contract did not favor him, and some other players are starting to feel like their teams are taking advantage of them, just like Tenny.
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The Rise of Contract Problems in Professional Fortnite
The circumstances surfacing revolve around Edgey of FLY Quest and Dmitri “Mitr0” Van de Vrie of Team Atlantis. Fans and analysts constantly place these in the discussion of the best professional Fortnite players, especially with their with recent success during the Fortnite Champion Series. Edgey, along with Liquid Cented and Brodie “rehx” Franks, have seen incredible results while competing in the NA West region. These three players have combined for eight trio tournament wins and now are in the discussion of the best trio in the world.
Edgey’s Contract Situation
He still winnin, which still means he keeps losin'… #FreeEdgey 😔🤟
— Storm (@4DRStorm) September 16, 2019
Edgey’s prize money entitlement has increased over the past 5 to 6 weeks. Details of his actual contract with FLY Quest are unclear at this point, but the general notion is that he is severely underpaid. Edgey likely came to an agreement with FLY Quest for either a one or multi-year deal, forcing him to stay with the organization until he fulfills all contractual obligations. With Edgey reaching previously unimaginable heights at the time he signed his contract, he is asking to field offers from other organizations. Regardless of what the details may be, Edgey’s predicament incited a supportive response from fellow professional Fortnite players.
Dmitri “Mitr0” Van de Vrie's Contract Situation
Van de Vrie’s current situation is similar, in that, he and Team Atlantis are butting heads over the details of his contract. Recent trio tournaments have been kind to Van de Vrie and his teammates Benjy “benjyfishy” David Fish of NRG Esports and Kyle “Mongraal” Jackson of FaZe Clan. Van de Vrie signed with Team Atlantis in July of 2018. Since then, he has remained at the top of professional Fortnite throughout. He and Jackson finished in 6th place at the Fortnite World Cup in duos. When Epic Games introduced the trio format for the Fortnite Champion Series, the success continued.
— Tfue (@Tfue) September 16, 2019
— benjyfishy (@benjyfishy) September 16, 2019
— Mongraal (@Mongraal) September 16, 2019
#freemitr0 Trends on Fortnite Twitter
This European trio sits alone at the top of the game, and are heavy favorites heading into the FCS Grand Finals. Over 5 weeks of FCS Qualifiers, Van de Vrie, Fish and Jackson finished no worse than 2nd place. Along with this success came a whole lot of money, and this is where the contract issues began to surface. Although Van de Vrie himself has not commented on the specifics of the contract, many professional players are Tweeting out #freemitr0 in support. Amongst these players is Tenney, who has previously endured his own contract woes.
For Team Atlantis, the organization has responded with a cryptic tweet hinting that more information may be coming soon on the matter:
Similar to Edgey, it’s likely that Van de Vrie either wants to renegotiate the terms of his contract or leave Team Atlantis. The recent successful endeavors of these players open up a whole different world of opportunities. Although Fortnite numbers on Twitch are on a slow decline, the Battle Royale is still one of the top games in terms of viewership and prize money. Epic Games actively provides massive prize pools for all eligible players to compete for. Edgey and Van de Vrie just so happen to be amongst the best of the best.
Teenage Fortnite Players Making A Lot of Money
The looming problem with professional Fortnite players is that many of them are between 13 and 18 years old. As players grow, their monetary entitlement grows, but players are ultimately subject to the terms of the agreement. Seeing as the contract details are not public record, we can only wait and see how these situations will play out. The FLY Quest organization is in full radio silence on the topic, which indicates that both parties are handling the disputes behind the scenes. Team Atlantis on the other hand, released a statement on Twitter in regard to the #freemitr0 campaign.
https://twitter.com/Team_Atlantis/status/1173884888380039171
With that, we eagerly await the response from the organizational side of both situations. Contracts are inherently private and it’s possible that Van de Vrie and Edgey are under some sort of non-disclosure agreement. This allows esports organizations to protect their investments in situations like this. Nonetheless, Van de Vrie and Edgey will continue working with their respective trios as we near the end of the Fortnite Champion Series. The FCS Grand Finals are right around the corner and professional players stand to earn a piece of the $10M USD that Epic Games is offering up.
FLY Quest, Team Atlantis, Edgey and Dmitri “Mitr0” Van de Vrie did not immediately respond to ESTNN's request for comment.
Image VIA: SkySports
Matt is a graduate of Southern New Hampshire University. He appreciates all esports titles but primarily focuses on Fortnite and Call of Duty. Matt continuously analyzes gameplay and plays the games himself to better understand in-game decisions by the best players in the world.